Emilia Clarke Was Almost The Villain In ‘Iron Man 3’

By Rachel West.
27 May 2019 2:49 PM

Emilia Clarke - Getty Images

Emilia Clarke was almost cast in “Iron Man 3”, according to the film’s screenwriter, Drew Pearce.

On Saturday, Pearce shared an Instagram post featuring a 2012 throwback pic from an early script read for the film, writing in the caption: “Downey, Cheadle, Emilia Clarke (long story, the script changed)… all vaguely terrifying.”

The place card shows Pearce reading for the part of JARVIS before Paul Bettany was cast as Tony Stark’s (Robert Downey Jr.) AI assistant, who ultimately evolved to become Avengers hero Vision.

A post shared by Drew Pearce (@mrdrewpearce) on May 24, 2019 at 9:37am PDT

Pearce didn’t offer any additional comments on the “long story” over how the script changed, nor any info on the role that the “Game Of Thrones” actress was to have played.

Since Pearce, who co-wrote the script with Shane Black, posted the photo over the weekend, fans have speculated that Clarke may have been cast in the role of Maya Hansen, who was initially conceived as the film’s villain. Ultimately, Rebecca Hall landed the part, but Marvel brass reportedly vetoed the idea of having the character as the movie’s villain.

In the finished film, Sir Ben Kingsley portrays a supposed supervillain called Mandarin who, in a surprise plot twist, is revealed to be an actor playing the role of a villain. Guy Pearce played the true villain, scientist Aldrich Killian.